Reproductive ecology and conservation of plant genetic resources of the wild

Abstract

Habitat degradation and overexploitation have threatened the sustainability of our plant genetic resources (PGR) growing in the wild. In the absence of any effective conservation efforts, many of them would become extinct in the coming years. Sustainability of any species depends on its successful reproduction and recruitment of new individuals to the population. The stability of the species is threatened when it experiences major constraint(s) in one or several reproductive events. Thus, for successful conservation and management of any vulnerable species, knowledge on reproductive ecology is essential. In the absence of such data any conservation efforts would remain arbitrary and largely ineffective. Amongst the reproductive events, pollination, seed dispersal and seedling establishment are the most critical aspects and a failure in any of them makes the species vulnerable. Identification of reproductive constraints, if any and their effective mitigation are necessary to conserve or recover vulnerable species. Unfortunately, there is hardly any information on reproductive ecology of our wild PGR. It is important to generate data on reproductive ecology to make our conservation efforts more effective and successful. Knowledge on reproductive ecology is also important to monitor the success or failure of any conservation programme.